[On-line] http://www.kelloggs.com (accessed on August 15, 2002). At one point, he lost his house. All Rights Reserved. He began baking cookies using his Aunt Dellas recipe. "In financial terms," Wally wrote in 1996, "all I've done since is amass debt and miss payments." Around the time Wally lost ownership in his company, his career took perhaps it's most remarkable turn. Other biographers spin a sadder story. Or it was God lighting up my life at that moment.. U.S.A. That same year, his fascination with cooking led him to enroll in the Food Trades Vocational High School. "Not just once" -says Amos, grinning and pausing to clap his hands sharply twice -"but two times! LAist's new podcast LA Made: Blood Sweat & Rockets explores the history of Pasadena's Jet Propulsion Lab, co-founder Jack Parsons' interest in the occult and the creepy local lore of Devil's Gate Dam. Amos and his cookie empire enjoyed a decade of success. Amos uprooted his second wife and newborn son and moved to Californiaand then Masakela dropped him. Amos has three sons from his first two marriages, Shawn, Michael and Gregory. . Eventually, Amos became a talent agent for the William Morris Agency. But his trademark smile, optimistic outlook and uncanny ability to promote remain unchanged. He began serving cookies to clients, inspired, depending on the account, by either Aunt Della or a back-of-package Nestle recipe. People . // Read more about Wally Amos story inside. Among the products developed by the company are pound cakes in such flavors as banana blueberry and orange cranberry, and fat-free muffins in a variety of flavors, including corn and honey raisin bran, apple cinnamon, chocolate passion, and blueberry. Amos, Wally, and Gregory Amos. His good nature and solid work habits soon helped him to advance, and he was eventually named the companys first black agent. 1975: Opened first Famous Amos retail outlet. Kellogg spokeswoman Kris Charles said the company has not significantly changed the original recipe when it acquired Famous Amos in 2001, as part of Keebler. Cookies were a hobby to relieve stress, says his son Shawn Amos, musician, and author of Cookies & Milk. He sought help to save the company, and ultimately himself. You need a team, he said. This was comfort food at its best. Born in Tallahassee, Fla., Amos moved to New York City at age 12 because of his parents divorce. "When I began to bake them myself, it became my own creative project for the hour or so it took to mix the batter and pop 'em in the oven," Amos writes in The Power in You. As he wrote in his autobiography, he began slowly to console himself and his frustration by making chocolate-chip cookies in the style of his Aunt Della. "One year, the theme of the block party was 'Cookies and Milk with Amos and Andy.' . Wally Amos, famed entrepreneur and founder of the Famous Amos chocolate chip cookie brand, was born Wallace Amos Jr. on July 1, 1936, in Tallahassee, Florida. he cries. "In Motown's heyday, they had something called the Motortown Revue, so he booked all that. ''If you sit around starting to feel sorry for yourself, and blaming everyone else for your position in life, it is like being in quicksand,'' he said. 548; May 1983, p. 53. When did Wally Amos start his company? - Sage-Answer New Recipe: How Did Wally Amos Lose His Money? - Cake Baking Hard as it is to imagine in the '90s, there was a time in America when there was no shop devoted solely to chocolate chip cookies. The store opened on March 9, 1975, on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Formosa Avenue in Los Angeles. "At the time, my career wasn't going too well. A successful motivational speaker, he penned inspirational self-help books and received a 1986 award for entrepreneurial excellence from President Ronald Reagan. A Famous Cookie And a Face to Match; How Wally Amos Got His Hand And In 2002, he was traveling the world promoting Uncle Wally's muffinsand himselfsince he had become a sought after inspirational He had an impressive client list, which included Simon and Garfunkel, the Temptations, Marvin Gaye (1939-1984), Sam Cooke (1935-1964), Dionne Warwick (1940-), and Diana Ross (1944-). In its first month of business, Nonam reported $33,000 in sales. When a new job opportunity in Los Angeles backfired, Amos grew disillusioned with show business. The new owners gobbled up more of my share until all of a sudden I found I had lost all ownership in the company I founded, Amos wrote. African American entrepreneur Wally Amos founded the Famous Amos cookie brand. Wally Amos was born on July 1, 1936, in Tallahassee, Florida. If you're enjoying this article, you'll love my daily morning newsletter, How To LA. "March 10, 1975," he says. Wally Amos gained prominence as an entrepreneur in the mid-1970s when he developed and marketed a brand of chocolate-chip cookies under the name "Famous Amos." an agent and by 1974, he was looking for something new. The Famous Amos Cookie Company was the first premium chocolate chip cookie. The narrative he established was that he was a talent manager who spent his whole life identifying and discovering new talent and the next big act that he discovered, that he was going to dedicate his career to, was 'The Cookie.'". Encyclopedia.com. In the back of his mind, however, he considered the idea of selling his cookies. The historical marker in front of 7181 Sunset Blvd. "Famous Amos" went with the company, too. He was the first black talent scout in America. He was bom in Tallahassee, Florida, and grew up there until his parents divorced when he was 12. U.S.A. Applegate, Jane. Cookies made him famous, but Amos has his own take: I want to be known as a guy who cared about people. But the reason is that theyve told themselves they cant. Most of the dedicated Famous Amos shops were shuttered. Within months, Amos had opened two more West Coast franchises, and the New York-based Bloomingdale's department store had begun selling the gourmet cookies. Having launched a modest cookie-making venture in Hawaii, Amos was legally forbidden to use his own name, the Famous Amos tag, or his likeness, to describe any of his future endeavors. The name I stopped at was Marvin Gaye. . Wally Amos Net Worth: $20 Thousand Childhood Private Life Career g, ght, nd Wght Additional Ventures Amos and his cookie empire enjoyed a decade of success. His rise serves as the most infamous cautionary tale. In 1967 Amos decided to leave William Morris to manage the career of South African trumpeter Hugh Masakela. was originally published on Box 419627 U.S.A. Leading American Businesses. A Famous Cookie And a Face to Match; How Wally Amos Got His Hand And His Name Back in the Game, https://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/03/business/famous-cookie-face-match-wally-amos-got-his-hand-his-name-back-game.html. Today, Famous Amos is an international brand that you can find in most grocery stores. The company, based in Shirley, N.Y., expects to produce 250 million muffins this year and 1 billion muffins annually by 2010. Who owns Famous Amos cookie company today? The former high school dropout has penned eight books, served as spokesman for Literacy Volunteers of America for 24 years and now gives motivational talks to corporations, universities and other groups. Ever the optimist, he views the experience as yet another reminder of the power of faith and positive thinking. "It's not the same formula. The legal order came from the owners of the Famous Amos Cookie Company. He began distributing Famous Amos cookies in luxury retailers like Macys and Bloomingdales. I was like a kid in a candy store!". He later dropped out of high school to join the Air Force before working as a mailroom clerk at the William Morris Agency, where he became a talent agent, working with The Supremes, Simon & Garfunkel and Marvin Gaye before borrowing $25,000 to launch his cookie business. while serving in the Air Force. With his vision of obtaining, maintaining, and increasing the quality of love in his world, Amos has been recognized for his passion, conscience, caring, and charity. Famous Amos eventually became a household name, as did Wally Amos. (AP Photo/Lucy Pemoni). [4] He started the business with the help of a $25,000 loan from Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy. Hindsight being what it is, Mr. Amos is now able to reflect philosophically on the low points. The Top 5 newsletter catches you up with LAs top 5 stories in just 3 minutes. Mr. Amos became a paid spokesman but left in frustration the next year. Im not a purchasing guy.. However, in 1985, mismanagement forced Amos to gradually sell off parts of his company. Day 27: Wally Amos - Black Business History Month Amos attracted clients by sending them chocolate chip cookies along with an invitation to visit him. There is no other homeland or mother country. (February 23, 2023). How the Cookie Crumbled Founded in 1975, the company took off almost instantly. Around the time Wally lost ownership in his company, his career took perhaps it's most remarkable turn. . By the time the Bass Brothers of Fort Worth, Texas, came on the scene in 1985, the company founder was in serious financial trouble. Amos doesn't even own his own name anymore. With this remark, made by Amos after he sold his cookie business, Amos turned to the new passion in his lifelecturing on inspirational issues. Net Worth of Wally Amos, The Man Who Lost His Cookie Empire The father of four, he continues his work as a spokesperson for Literacy Volunteers of America, and one precent of pretax profits of Uncle Nonam cookies are donated to the support of Cities in Schools, a national dropout-prevention program of which he is a member of the board of directors. Amos soon left againthis time for good. Will Orange County's Fledgling Clean Power Agency Survive? . "I loved the cookies my Aunt Della made for me," Wally Amos wrote in his motivational book, The Power in You. By 1988 the company lost $2.5 million. ", While "The Cookie" was supposedly the star, Amos's kindness and goodwill helped make Famous Amos successful. On the first day, customers were lined up outside. On June 13, 1977, Amos' picture was on the cover of Time magazine, which ran a lengthy article about him and his success. Public Company, 1740 Monrovia Avenue But he made a lot of bad decisions, his son says. His first job after the military was in the stockroom at Saks Fifth Avenue. Its like comparing a Rolls Royce with a Volkswagen, he said. After a four-year stint in the U.S. Air Force, Amos returned to New York in 1957. Amos started baking to console himself, since cookies always made him feel better. Within two years Amos returned to retail marketing based on a chocolate chip theme with his Chip & Cookie concept. Tietosuojakytnnstmme ja evstekytnnstmme voit lukea lis siit, miten kytmme henkiltietojasi. Your tax-deductible financial support keeps our stories free to read, instead of hidden behind paywalls. [15], On July 1, 1979, Amos married Christine (Harris) Amos, who later helped him design the early merchandise and packaging for Famous Amos cookies. The man who once called himself the face that launched a thousand chips told Parade magazine of his new company: Its still methe best Wally Amos I can be., Amoss self-professed love affair with the chocolate chip cookie began in his childhood. He represented musicians such as The Temptations, Sam Cooke, and Marvin Gaye. "Famous Amos Gets its First National Push from Keebler." "Amos, Wally 1937 "I don't eat 'em anymore, man," says Amos. . Famous amos oatmeal raisin | Updated January 2023 When Wally Amos first developed Famous Amos cookies in 1975, the brand became one of the most unlikely success stories in food history. Public Company Wally Amos' Net Worth in 2023 - Bio, Age, Career, Spouse In April 2019, its current owner, Kellogg Company, announced plans to sell Famous Amos, the Keebler brand and its fruit snacks business to Ferrero for $1.4 billion. Before long, the company had changed ownership four times. In 1986, President Ronald Reagan formally presented to Wally Amos the President's Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence. Neither parent could read or write. Around this time, in 1970, Amos, frustrated both personally and professionally, began to soothe his nerves by making cookies like his Aunt Della had done. 'Famous Amos' became the vehicle to express my love in the outside world. Of his experience living with his Aunt Della, Amos noted "for me, chocolate-chip cookies have always been an expression of love.". '', See the article in its original context from. Mount Prospect, Illinois 60056 "He would bring them with him to pitch meetings, the recording studio, to the soundstages, to executives' offices," his son Shawn explains. There are people who convince themselves that they cant do anything with their lives because of whats happened to themand theyre right. Aunt Della loved to cook He is the creator of the Famous Amos brand of chocolate chip cookies. The idea seemed far-fetched, but by 1974, Amos had grown completely disillusioned with the entertainment business. He spent the ensuing years working in the stock room at Saks Fifth Avenue, and in the mailroom at the prestigious William Morris Agency. Always the survivor, Amos started a new company in 1992, this time selling freshly baked muffins and cakes. For the latest national news from NPR and our live radio broadcast, visit LAist.com/radio. It honors a cookie. He wrote up a business plan and approached some of his famous friends including singers Helen Reddy (1941-) and Marvin Gaye, who each contributed to his start-up funds. On March 10, 1975, Amos took the advice of some friends, and with $25,000 from singers Marvin Gaye and Helen Reddy, [4] he opened a cookie store at 7181 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, in Los Angeles, California, naming it "Famous Amos". Amos told Ebony: I began to have enormous success when I started doing things to do them well. . The cruelest blow of all fell in the early 1990s, when the cookie man was struggling to keep his home from foreclosure. Ebony, September 1979, pp. During its first year in business, Famous Amos had sales of $300,000 and Wally Amos's smiling face became increasingly well known since it was featured on every tin or bag of cookies. From the beginning, he had a whole myth and lore around the store. He had enormous enthusiasm for his products, and he used his boundless energy and personal popularity to promote them. Similarly, why did Wally Amos lose his company? But it was her recipes for life that sustain me to this day," he states on his website. Long Island Business News (October 21, 1996): p. 41. Then in March the Keebler Company, the new owner of Famous Amos, offered Mr. Amos a two-year contract to promote his old brand. Wally Amos became the first Black talent agent in the history of the William Morris Agency in 1962. A Newsweek correspondent called him the progenitor of the upscale cookie and the greatest cookie salesman alive. Today Amos is no longer involved with the Famous Amos cookies found in most supermarkets and many vending machines, but he has begun a whole new gourmet cookie venture, the Uncle Nonam Cookie Company. It filed for bankruptcy in 1996. Mr. Amos is happy to do his part. . In the 1970s Amos founded the Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookie Corporation, the very first gourmet cookie business to attract a national following. Some of my clients were quitting the business and others were not paying me commission Baking cookies at home was my way of healing myself, loving myself and sharing my love with my friends.". Masekela fired him, so Amos worked at his friend John Levy's entertainment firm. Wally Amos is a salesman who uses flair, hype, and showmanship to convey his message.". Amos, Wally and Leroy Robinson. Amos said: "We were made to think, to be curious, to seek solutions, and not add to problems." [10][failed verification] A Famous Amos distributor at the time, Lou Avignone, heard Amos on a local radio talk show and, inspired by Amos' story of his early business success with Famous Amos and his spirit, contacted Amos with the idea for starting a new business. In 1975, he explained his strategy to the New York Times: The marketing campaign worked. Lower Lake, CA: Aslan Publishing, 1994. While muffins may be on his mind these days, Amos couldnt entirely leave the cookie business. Carlsen, Clifford. He's got a fine attitude in his mind, man, he's got a kazoo in his shirt pocket, and he's got cookie batter (the real stuff) in the refrigerator at home in Kailua, Hawaii. I was about to get out of the car when I saw, for the first time, the logo on the side of the building: THE ORIGINAL HOME OF THE FAMOUS AMOS CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Some bags contained no cookies at all. Business First, (March 2, 2001): p. A21. Encyclopedia.com. ." However, in 1985, mismanagement forced Amos to gradually sell off parts of his company. "We might be related." "He had a headshot made of 'The Cookie,'" Shawn says. It was a huge honor and one he would never forget; yet it had come, ironically, after Amos had been forced to sell his company. In the late- 1980s the company changed ownership several more times, and Amos ultimately became a mere figurehead with no role in the operations of the company he had founded. The message was, before you even turn the page, taste the cookies.". He has three sons and a daughter and lives in Hawaii. While he created a thriving business, he did not have all the skills he needed to run it as it grew. Amos's role as a perpetual hype man had its downside. The shop cleared $300k its first year. In 1988 the company lost $2.5 million, and the Shansby Group purchased it for $3 million. In an effort to revive his business, he sold a majority stake to a group of investors led by the investment firm Bass Brothers. Born in Tallahassee, he has said his mother switched him at the slightest provocation. When Amos returned to New York, he studied at a secretarial school and was briefly employed at Saks Fifth Avenue before moving on to the William Morris Agency. I deal in love." Wally Amos | Encyclopedia.com Article Title: Wally Amos Biography, Author: Biography.com Editors, Website Name: The Biography.com website, Url: https://www.biography.com/business-leaders/wally-amos, Publisher: A&E; Television Networks, Last Updated: May 24, 2021, Original Published Date: April 3, 2014. globalgrind.com, 'Dilbert' Comic Creator Calls Black People A 'Hate Group,' Urges Segregation So Whites Can 'Escape', Bernie Mac Show Star Camille Winbush Is Not Ashamed Of Joining OnlyFans, Kyle Rittenhouse Faces 2nd Civil Lawsuit, Continues To Beg For Money From His Supporters, Ben Stein's 'Aunt Jemima' Rant Is A Master Class On White Privilege, Why Did tWitch Kill Himself? In the early 1960s Amos took a job in the mail room at the William Morris Talent Agency. How Did Famous Amos Lose His Company In the late 1980s, Famous Amos ran into trouble when sales of his cookies began to decline. The Shansby Group sued Amos for violating an agreement that forbade him to use his name and likeness on the packaging of any food products. America sure must be one remarkable place if someone can be a wild success, a celebrity, from nothing but chocolate chip cookies. Still trying to make it as an entertainment manager, Amos began baking chocolate chip cookies for therapy, using a recipe similar to his Aunt Dellas. The Amos household was characterized by a strict code of personal behavior. Wally Amos hugs Jayson Weidmann in the doorway of his cookie store after his weekly children's book reading on June 16, 2007, in Kailua, Hawaii. None of them have had the mass appeal or success of Famous Amos. . . Fax: (856) 342-3878 Shortly before graduation, Amos dropped out of high school to join the United States Air Force. Faced with the prospect of losing his business, Amos sold the controlling share to the Bass Brothers of Fort Worth, Texas for $1.1 million. Amos appeared in the October 6, 2016 episode of the American television show Shark Tank seeking $50,000 funding for 20% equity of his company "Cookie Kahuna". She introduced young Wally to the simple delights of a warm, chocolate chip cookie. By the mid-'80s, Famous Amos was losing money and Amos slowly lost control of his creation. Money was so scarce for him and his family that he often had to walk four miles to and from school to save the bus fare. Racist Ex-University Of Kentucky 'Karen' Sophia Rosing Is Charged For Assaulting Black Student, Mississippi Cops Beat, Waterboarded Handcuffed Black Men, Shot 1 For Dating White Women': Lawyers. ." Hughes, Allan J., Jr. "Wally Amos Still Famous but with a Lower Case "F." Providence Business News, 11 December 1995. Amos and his cookie empire enjoyed a decade of success. The Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookie Company was officially born in March 1975 at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Formosa Avenue in Los Angeles. "He had a big block party for the opening of the store and every year at Christmas he'd have a big block party," Shawn recalls. Why did Wally Amos lose his company? This is also how Toll House brand cookies got their start. Eventually Amos laughs and wheels back into the hall. I have a fetish for chocolate chip cookies. Besides cookies and muffins, promoting literacy is his passion. Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies, as seen in an alternate universe. But Amos became restless and dropped out of school just months before graduation, signing up for the U.S. Air Force in 1953. I want to tell people that if life hands them a lemon, they can turn it into lemonade. He added: Theres a lot of wisdom and spirituality in these cookies., For his part, Amos has become wiser and more spiritual himself. Forbes, March 10, 1986, pp. Famous Amos was the real star of the brand, appearing on packaging and merchandise in his signature straw hat and embroidered cotton shirt. ." Of course, it will take more than Mr. Amos's paid seal of approval to revive the brand. While Famous Amos soon lived up to its name, thriving for nearly a decade, the company's founder lost control of his business. "When she baked cookies and shared them, she was expressing her love for me and the rest of the family." Encyclopedia.com. Your greatest contribution to your country is not your signature straw hat in the Smithsonian, but the people you have inspired to learn to read, Bush said. During his four years in the military, he finished his high school education. I was stupid, plain and simple. The Famous Amos shirt and hat are currently on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Unfortunately for Amos, he . Amos founded the cookie company in 1975 and things just didnt go as planned. Wallace "Wally" Amos, Jr. (born July 1, 1936) is an American television personality, entrepreneur, and author from Tallahassee, Florida. As a man who had made his living promoting other people as an agent, he used his background to come up with ways to sell cookies. He was thus able to support his first wife and two small children. We are very proud of our Famous Amos cookies and believe were producing high-quality, great-tasting product, she said. He dropped out of high school, though he is now spokesman for Literacy Volunteers of America and devotes a lot of his time to literacy and anti-drop-out efforts. As quoted in a Black Enterprise profile from November 1992, Amos said, "I knew I had the best product; all I needed to do was to convince the public of something I already knew.". In his autobiography, The Famous Amos Story, Amos said that his parents rarely laughed and seldom displayed affection toward him. Amos and his cookie empire enjoyed a decade of success. Amos, who created the Famous Amos cookie empire three decades ago and eventually lost ownership of the company _ as well as the rights to use the catchy name _ is now running a modest cookie shop in Hawaii. Despite robust sales, by 1985, the business was losing money, so Amos brought in outside investors. Famous Amos - Wikipedia However, he faced financial setbacks and lost ownership of his company. Culinary entrepreneur Wally Amos stands in front of the original Famous Amos store on Sunset Blvd. Perhaps Dennis Kimbro and Napoleon Hill of Black Enterprise said it best when describing Amos: "Some call him a promoter, others say he is a public relations wizardbut neither title adequately describes what he does best. They were saying I didnt even have the right to my own name, Amos said in Parade. [19][20][21] Amos currently resides in Columbia, South Carolina, where he is working on Aunt Della's Cookies.[21]. Contents 1983, Reprint. Amos, Wally, Eden-Lee Murray, and Neale Donald Walsch. Commitment kept moving me on from one point to the next. One aspect of Wally Amoss life remains consistent from one era to the next, however: his dedication to his product. Amos considered the Famous Amos cookies of the 1990s to be cheap knockoffs, which had neither the quality nor the taste of his original cookies. Garden City: Doubleday, 1983. Wallace Amos Jr. was born in Tallahassee, Florida, in 1936, the only child of Wallace and Ruby Amos. The Uncle Nonam (pronounced No-NAHH-may) Cookie Company specializes in five varieties of gourmet cookies. Amos planned a big party to launch his new business: he hired a band, bought champagne, and invited many of his celebrity friends. I was committed to creating a new life for myself. Uncle Wallys Muffin Co. was originally founded as Uncle Noname Cookie Co. in 1992, a few years after Amos lost Famous Amos. Wally Amos was a walking, breathing brand who couldnt seem to cash in on his own success. ''If Dave left Wendy's and came back after 10 years because things had not gone well the message is signaling change that 'We're going back to the way we used to be.'